The Humboldt State University campus on March 14 for its first day of spring break following the cancellation of face-to-face classes March 26 through April 17 due to the COVID-19 global pandemic. | Photo by James Wilde

Students react to in-person class cancellations due to global pandemic

As spring break arrived and the COVID-19 pandemic continued its tear across the globe, many Humboldt State University students wondered what to do as HSU canceled face-to-face instruction until at least April 17. Some students stuck around while others went home. The pandemic, directly or not, has affected all students.

“I feel like it’s a very serious outbreak and people need to take it seriously. I do think it’s getting blown out of proportion in some ways and people are panicking before they need to, but it’s just something I’m kind of trying to roll with, essentially.”

“I feel like it’s a very serious outbreak and people need to take it seriously,” Bailey said. “I do think it’s getting blown out of proportion in some ways and people are panicking before they need to, but it’s just something I’m kind of trying to roll with, essentially.”

Kiera Price, a junior journalism major, also said she would travel home. She thought both academic and national leaders should be more vigilant.

“I feel like instead of limiting social interaction, they should do more to prepare for it,” Price said. “Like, for example, the fact that there isn’t more of a stricter way to limit survivors from coming in.”

Price recognized there isn’t a lot to be done, but still expressed a longing for something more.

Tim Arceneaux, a senior English major, looked forward to staying in Humboldt. With a sigh, Arceneaux said he understood the measures taken by HSU.

“I think the precautions that the University is taking here and all around the country make sense, but at the same time, I find them to be really frustrating,” Arceneaux said. “I hope that this issue will bring the global community together and allow people to realize the importance of universal healthcare.”

Journalism major Kiera Price on March 13. | Photo by Gabe Kim

Film major Norbert Rodriguez on March 13. | Photo by Gabe Kim

English major Tim Arceneaux on March 13. | Photo by Gabe Kim

Arceneaux said there was one key thing HSU could do to mitigate the spread of the novel coronavirus.

“They could try to alert students more about the health resources on campus,” Arceneaux said. “Because I feel like at this point, it’s almost an inevitability that someone is going to contract the coronavirus, and I’m not sure exactly what health resources are going to be available to students that contract the disease.”

Norbert Rodriguez, a junior film major, had planned to travel to Southern California to visit family, but decided to stick around once the coronavirus broke out. He said he thought HSU took too long to respond to the pandemic compared to other universities.

“At the moment, there aren’t any test kits [in Humboldt], so there’s really no way of knowing that there are any confirmed cases,” Rodriguez said. “I feel like it should’ve been a bit more proactive.”

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Gabe Kim is a junior journalism student from Burlingame, California. He joined The Lumberjack as part of the major requirement, but also to get the experience of creating content for a student publication. He enjoys writing general news, sports and opinions. He dreams of becoming a filmmaker or multimedia content producer. In his free time, he likes listening to music.